


Aftermath

by RosyPalms



Category: RWBY
Genre: Family Drama, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-13
Updated: 2019-10-13
Packaged: 2020-12-14 13:29:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,324
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21016556
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RosyPalms/pseuds/RosyPalms
Summary: An attempted follow-up to the stinger at the end of volume 5. Tai and Raven talk.





	Aftermath

Taiyang was wholly satisfied with his life on Patch. Granted, he would’ve liked his daughters to be around rather than god knows where. However, his girls had always had a mind of their own, for better or for worse. He knew he had to let go, but it was difficult in these times. At least their uncle was looking after them.

Besides that, however, Tai liked his home. It was a tranquil spot in the woods. Far enough away to escape the bustle of the bigger cities, but not too far to feel isolated. Civilization was just around the corner if he needed it, and any other time he could savor the peace and quiet.

On this otherwise unremarkable day Taiyang perked up. Something was wrong. The subtle ambience of the forest that so easily faded into obscurity upon prolonged exposure made itself known by its absence.

Tai scanned his environment. A single black feather slowly curling its way towards the ground caught his eye. As his gaze followed the feather’s descent, he ended up looking into the forest again, and what he saw there made his heart freeze in his chest.

Standing in the shade was a phantom, a ghost from his past. The pale woman took measured steps towards him. He hadn’t seen her in years, hadn’t expected to ever see her again.

But something about her seemed off. He had known her as a proud, self-assured woman. Now she approached him timidly, barely raising her crimson eyes to meet his. She looked small.

“Why are you here?”, Tai asked. Raven stopped in her tracks and looked at the ground. For a long moment silence lingered between them. Tai’s head ached. Seeing her again upset him. He had thought that he had sorted his feelings towards Yang’s mother out a long time ago, but now he had to admit that he had been lying to himself.

“I… don’t know what to do, Tai”, she told him. She had this pleading look on her face that Tai had never seen before. He felt the urge to comfort her, but he knew that slapping her for all the grief she had cause would probably be more appropriate.

He turned away and walked to the door. He opened it and looked over his shoulder. Raven was still there. Tai sighed.  
“Come in”

Tai made tea while Raven took a seat at the kitchen table.  
“The usual?”  
“Yes, please”. Black tea with a smidgen of brown sugar. He put the cup in front of her and took a seat on the other side of the table. Raven inhaled the richness of the tea, and for the first time that day, Tai saw a hint of a smile on her lips.

“This place hasn’t changed much”, she whispered.  
“Don’t get used to it”. Raven’s finger’s twitched as if she had gotten shocked. “What happened?”. She looked into her cup as if it held the answer.  
“Yang and I… had a fight”. Taiyang didn’t say anything. He stared at her until she dared to look him in the eyes.  
“Are we talking about an argument or an actual fight?”. His voice was cold. Raven’s fingers twitched again.  
“Do you really think so lowly of me, Tai?”  
“I don’t know what to think of you anymore. I won’t make any assumptions”. She drew a shuddering breath and sighed, stirring up the steam rising from her cup.  
“Fair enough. I deserve this. It was an argument”  
“About what?”  
“I can’t tell you that”

Tai was starting to get angry.  
“What exactly do you want from me then? As it happens, children and their parents have disagreements sometimes. You wouldn’t know that, of course…”, he grumbled and sipped his tea. It calmed him down at least a little bit.

Silence. Raven just sat there, clasping her cup and looking into the dark depths of the tea. She deserved the harsh words, but Tai still felt a pang of guilt over what he had just said. He had fully expected her to yell at him for it. Instead, he was shocked when he realized what was happening.

Raven’s jaw was clenched, her lips pressed together. Tai couldn’t see her eyes, but he could see the clear droplets coming from them, running down to the tip of her nose, and falling into her tea.

“Tai…”, Raven whispered. Her voice was hoarse. “…am I a bad mother?”. _Unbelievable_, Tai thought. He leaned back in his chair and sighed.  
“You left us when Yang was still a baby, Raven. What kind of answer do you expect from me?”  
“I know! I know, but… I tried to look after her in my own way. I thought I was doing what was best, but…”, Raven trailed off. Tai withheld a snarky comment this time, though he seriously wondered what Raven’s idea of mothering looked like in practice.

“I’m worried about her, Tai”  
“So am I”  
“It’s not the same. You don’t know what I know. You-“  
“You could always enlighten me, Raven”, Tai snapped. “Maybe this would make at least a little bit of sense, if you did”. Raven shook her head ever so slightly

“For crying out loud, Raven!”  
“It doesn’t matter!”, she shouted, finally meeting his gaze again. He had never seen her look like such a mess. Even after their most dangerous missions together, she had maintained her composure. Now she sat in front of him with puffy eyes. “Yang is walking into danger with open arms. I wanted to stop her, talk her out of it, but… our girl is stronger than me. Braver”

A small smile snuck onto Tai’s face. That sounded like his little sunshine. 

“Tai, if she keeps going along with Qrow, she’ll get hurt, and I… am not brave enough to follow her”, Raven said, defeat ringing in her voice. He didn’t like what she was saying. He was worried about Yang and Ruby all the time anyway. Raven’s ominous warnings only made it worse.

“I trust Qrow. He would protect Yang and Ruby with his life if necessary”, he said firmly.  
“Tai-“  
“But I think I finally get what you want from me”, he continued. “As her parents, it is up to us to support Yang however we can. I do my part by staying here, rather than going out and dragging her as well as Ruby back home by the scruff of their necks”.  
“How is that supposed to help?”, Raven asked.  
“It gives them piece of mind”, Tai said. “They know that there is someone waiting for them back home. They have a place to return to once they’ve accomplished their goal, or even if they fail. That’s comforting. And I am willing to worry myself sick day after day for the sake of that little bit of solace”.

Tai took a large sip of his tea, mostly to allow Raven to ponder them for a moment.  
“I won’t answer your question, Raven, but I will give you some advice”, he said. She looked at him expectantly. “You are torn between your worries regarding whatever it is you’re not telling me about, and Yang, correct?”. Raven nodded. “Then ask yourself: What’s more worrying? That… thing? Or Yang falling victim to it? Or, to put it into different words, is your fear of it greater than your love for Yang?”.

Raven stared into her cup as she thought about Tai’s words. Meanwhile, he had finished his tea. He got up, washed the cup, and put it back in its place.   
“Now, please finish your tea and leave. I still have stuff to take care of”, he said.

Raven got up and walked to the door.  
“Thank you, Tai”, she said softly. He turned around to catch a last glimpse of her, but Raven was already gone.

Taiyang heaved a sigh of relieve. He went to the table to clean up. Raven hadn’t touched her tea at all.


End file.
